Is there a need for organized religion?
Here are my thoughts and personal experiences:
Religion’s mission, whether its leaders are aware of it or not, is to maintain past traditions. God and tradition are interchangeable words, at least in my religion.
Religion does not exist to indulge in anything that is considered new or speculative. For example my religion (Mormon) holds strongly to the traditional roles of women and men.
Do I believe defending the traditions of our past are important in our everyday behaviors and outlooks? Yes.
But, new ideas are born amidst the practice of our traditional ways. How do new ideas get woven into traditional ideas? This is where my own experiences come in.
On social issues, I lean heavily toward the relatively new ideas that blacks, women, and homosexuals have equal standing to men, and have equal claim to all blessings, rights, privileges, and support afforded to men, which includes the most powerful men.
In this area, I have had conflict with my own religion. My religion defends the traditional ideas that women have separate and distinct roles to men; that until recently, blacks were unable to hold the priesthood available to white men, because blacks were considered inferior; and that homosexuality is unnatural and that homosexual sexual practices is a sin, worthy of excommunication. I disagree strongly with these traditional ideas, and I always have.
But, of utmost importance, it’s the conflict and open disagreement that pushes the issues forward. My religion pushes me to hold to traditional teachings. I push back and offer up new ideas it should accept.
Here is the sensitive line that must be seen. Had my religion not held to these traditional teachings, I doubt I would have had these opposing views come into my mind.
Our existence has always been based on the tension between opposites. It sharpens the arguments and resolve of each side. And almost always, the clash of opposite views often results in a new synthesis – in something neither side thought possible during the time of tension.
For example, my religion eventually changed its policy of discrimination, which was enough for me. But, it went beyond what I thought possible. It now goes arm and arm with the leading African American organization (the NAACP) into the inner cities of America to enhance the lives of those who live there. . . (oh my gosh – please. Where were you a hundred years ago?) Meanwhile. . . ,
those who disagreed with one another in intense confrontation on blacks have probably passed on. However, their lively engagement concluded with something greater than either side could have IMAGINED possible at the time.
So, is there still a place for organized religion? As long as you have traditions, there’ll be organized religion to canonize them, which will give rise to guys like me, who will challenge them. So the answer is yes, why not.